Our Nicaragua Trip

   We've been back from Nicaragua for a couple of weeks now and after reflecting on our trip and my "meltdown" mentioned in the previous post I now ask myself: "what was all the fuss about?" In the end I must say it was an enjoyable trip.
   We spent the majority of our time on the Caribbean Coast of Nicaragua, as unique a place as I have ever visited. The coast differs greatly from the the majority of Nicaragua. While the Pacific side Nicaragua is Puro Espanol,  the coast is like a spicy gumbo; a lively blend of Creole and Indigenous cultures with a flourish of Spanish sprinkled in. English is the dominant language here but almost everyone we spoke to was multilingual. Reggae music and Bob Marley images coexist side by side with 1980's Country & Western music. Caribbean influenced foods like Rundown and Patties share the table alongside rice and beans and plantanos.. Surrounded by water we enjoyed beautiful views of sunsets and tranquil(relatively) evenings and star filled nights sitting by the pier of our hotel.
   Our main reason for going there however was the preaching work. The congregation in Pearl Lagoon has about 12 or so publishers and a large area of territory, some of which has not been preached to in years. We were privileged to share in the work and enjoy several nice experiences while there. On more than one occasion we had people come up to us and ask us for literature while we were in the field. Our most exciting day was visiting Kakabila, an indigenous (Miskito) village about an hour away by boat from Pearl Lagoon.
   The people of Kakibila live in modest homes with wells and outdoor wood stoves. Many are fishermen and cows and horses roam about freely. As we made our way from house to house through the village everyone stopped whatever they were doing when we reached their house, invited us in and listened to what we had to say.

   One woman named Adelia was busy working in the kitchen when we called. She invited us in to the outdoor kitchen that all the homes have. It is a small wooden room outside the home. There is a place to keep a fire going (they use wood to cook there) and a small sink area. Usually a work table or small chair is here as well. When we visited her she listened intently as I shared with her the tract on suffering and read Rev. 21:3, 4 from the Bible. As you can see above her bird was also curious as to what we had to offer!
   We also visited a young couple named Mariano and Maribel. We shared the December magazines "Do we still need God?" with them. I guess the sight of foreigners was a novelty to Maribel because she kept smiling at Suzanne and I the whole time we were there. As we left Suzanne noted Mariano's demeanor and said he had a sad look about his face. We returned to the house and talked some more with them. He listened intently as if what he was hearing was very important to him. We showed them the Good News brochure and reviewed lesson number five, summarizing the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve and how Jehovah's purpose for the earth has not changed. Although Mariano seemed to have much on his mind, he thanked us for coming telling them these things and that he did not know them. As we left the two of them sat on their porch reading the literature we left with them.
   It occurred to me that these people although they live simple, humble lives listen to the Kingdom message. We hope that in the coming weeks the friends in PL will be able to visit them and cultivate the seeds of truth that were sown.                                                  

"all aboard...next stop Kakabila"

they're "out" of the "house"

Dani living out her "Needgreater Dream"

"Bacon and Eggs"

a "kitchen"

they've got satellite??!!!

we preached until the cows came home...

...but in the end we were happy!